A Social Media Marketer’s Perspective: The Most Annoying Thing about Fake Twitter Accounts

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Two days ago, Neil Young joined Twitter. Nearly 26,000 users are already following him, including me. So what did the massively influential singer-songwriter have to say as his first tweets?

As a fan, this was a huge disappointment. No insights into his famously introspective lyrics or deep explorations of his diverse musical styles? Not even close. Instead, some generic promotional drivel – clearly, this is not really Neil Young but rather a publicist or marketer who is endorsing his brand.

An article about Neil Young’s deceiving Twitter tease on GigaOM.com focuses on whether the fake hype is reason enough for social media companies to start flagging the difference between brand and personal accounts. It also raises the question of whether famous people’s promotional accounts will be excused if Twitter decides to ban fake names.

The most questionable part of the fake hype over the Neil Young Twitter account to me, however, is the boring content the marketer has published so far. As a former Content Development Team Lead at WebiMax, and as the current Social Media Manager, one thing I always stress is the importance of understanding your audiences and writing with them in mind.

Whether you’re a content marketer writing a blog post for a client or a social media marketer composing a tweet for a campaign, give the readers what they want. In this case, fewer dull marketing posts and a little more “Rockin’ in the Free World.” Neil Young’s distinctive guitar sounds and signature voice deserve it – and so do his fans.

I asked our content writers and social media marketers to come up with ideas for Neil Young tweets, and within minutes here were some of the best responses:

1. If I could tweet this through a harmonica I would: the @rollingstone exclusive premiere of new video Walk Like a Giant http://bitly.com/QSj1hD

2. While @jimmyfallon did a great job impersonating Neil Young for his show, Young’s lyrics are more thoughtful than this: http://bit.ly/S3bgtW